Cap Somers

Paramount's DVD is from the UCLA photochemical restoration. It remains the highest quality video release of the film which is long overdue for a new transfer and could vastly improve in a new restoration as Sony proved with their 4K restorations of the Ranown Cycle. The DVD does have extensive well done supplements and is still essential. A French BD was released in late 2024 and an earlier Japanese BD exists but their transfer sources are unknown. Reviews on Amazon France seem to indicate the BD is a poor version of the DVD's HD master source.

Maybe France or Japan Blu-ray have a better encode?

Arrow's deluxe presentation is a fantastic package with great supplements, art and printed materials. Sadly the master is a heavily processed Paramount affair. It has seemingly been severely grain managed and the mono audio is horribly thin when it shouldn't be. Stereo and 5.1 options are also given but they seem to be more of home video remixes. They do not have the fidelity issue of the compromised mono but also show marked differences as if they were remixed from stem sources. This seems to have suffered lesser degrees of the problems that plagued The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance's 4K master. This is the best version to date but one wishes Paramount could leave scans alone.

Kino Lorber 2024 Reissue Blu-ray has much better encoding than previous Kino Lorber Blu-ray, or MoC or Germany Blu-ray see caps

4K restoration from Original Camera Negative

Same master, but less bitrate starved.

The encode on the BD is preferable to the UHD. Same master, but less bitrate starved: https://x.com/SadHillDevan/status/1530057783885721607?s=20 and see caps

The Arrow Video Blu-ray is the best iteration so far coming from a new restoration complete with great supplements and package. The original limited edition version included a second disc with the alternate 2.0:1 framed version. The primary disc is 1.85:1. Older releases pre-2008 were all in Academy ratio. 1.85 is the best compromise ratio for the visuals. As good as this release is, the master is showing its age and sadly has a number of frozen grain artifacts.